How I Met Your Father
by Kuramastrass
Summary: Atsuko has died, but she still has something very important to tell Yusuke. When Yusuke reads the letter his mother left him, he learns who is father is, how Atsuko met him... and that everything he thought about his mother is pretty dead-wrong.
1. Atsuko

**This is my latest one-shot... It's based on my theory of who Yusuke's father is.**

**I don't own YuYu Hakusho.**

**Oh, and if anyone was wondering, this fanfiction is based off an idea I got listening to "Does Your Mother Know?" by ABBA. I love ABBA... and the scene from Mamma Mia!: The Movie where they're on the beach singing this song isn't bad either.**

**So, I'll shut up now and let the fanfiction do the talking! Enjoy "How I Met Your Father"! And review, please!**

Yusuke was staring at his desk, or, rather, the envelope on his desk. Keiko had brought it to him.

"They wouldn't say who they were; they just told me to give this to you. They didn't tell me why, or who it was from, either."

They were probably from the FBI. Or secretly from Koenma. Who knew?

Must be top-secret information, though. It had to be. If it wasn't, wouldn't they have told Keiko at _least _who it was _from_?

He opened the envelope. Inside was a note and another, smaller envelope, addressed to him.

His heart sank into his stomach. He knew that handwriting. But it couldn't be from her.

She'd died two weeks ago.

He read the small note.

_It was one of her last requests that you get this letter. You weren't at her wake or at her funeral, so we came to deliver it to you personally._

So it _was_ from her.

It had been many years since he had talked to his mother – probably twenty or so. He had never thought about contacting her, and she hadn't really tried to contact him.

And when Keiko had told him the news, his exact words had been, "Oh, that's too bad."

He sighed, stood up, and grabbed the other envelope. Opening it, he started to read it as he walked downstairs.

_I know what you must think. You must think that I was drunk, or was raped. You must think that I was always a drinker and a partier. I know you must think I smoked and drank every single day I was pregnant with you._

_You're wrong, Yusuke._

_Let me tell you a story. One last bedtime story. Will you listen for me?_

_Let me tell you how I met your father._

_The lights were low. The energy in the air was almost visible. It sent shockwaves through the air, like lightning._

_The music was great – it matched the feel of the room. It was high energy music, with a catchy beat._

_As I danced, I looked around. The longer I went without seeing who I was looking for, I began to get worried. I told myself not to be disappointed – that he had better things to do than hang out at parties, that I had come here to have fun, not to see him – but I was easily disappointed at 14. No matter what I told myself, it didn't make any difference._

_But then I did see him, in the darkest corner, leaning with his back against the wall. Our eyes met, so I know he saw me, too. He smiled a little._

_I bounded over to him. I hadn't thought I would actually see him here, so I was excited. "Hi, Sakyo!"_

_He chuckled. He must have been laughing at me – must have been laughing because I was acting like an excited puppy. But I didn't care. There was no cruelty in the sound, like he thought how I was acting was... cute._

_I told myself not to get my hopes up. The higher my hopes were, the worse it would feel when I was disappointed._

_Instead of saying hello when he finished his chuckling, he merely said my name. "Atsuko."_

_A sense of thrill shot through my veins when he said my name. I liked the way he said it, liked the way it sounded in his voice._

_"Isn't this party great?" I asked him, yelling to be heard over the music._

_"Wonderful." He rolled his eyes._

_I covered my mouth with my hand, starting to giggle. I had thought it was funny, the way he'd rolled his eyes, the sarcastic way he'd said wonderful._

_How could anyone not be having fun here?_

_"Does your mother know that you're here?" he asked me._

_"No – of course not!" I was shocked. "Why would I tell her I was coming here?"_

_Sakyo chuckled again. "Where did you tell her you were, then?"_

_"I'm studying at Sari's," I answered promptly._

_He didn't know who Sari was. I could tell by the look on his face that he was about to ask, but I answered his question before he could._

_"Sari's one of my classmates – everyone says they're going over to her place to study when they want to go somewhere."_

_"And what are you studying?" he asked me now._

_That surprised me. I hadn't been expecting that question. A blank look appeared on my face while I thought._

_"I don't know," I said finally. "I forgot." He began to chuckle again, and I shrugged. "I'll ask Sari later."_

_I turned my back to him, to look for her in the crowd. She was dancing with a boy – an older boy I barely recognized. They were near the edge of the crowd, close to us. "That's her," I said, pointing._

_As I turned back to face him, a new song began to play. I felt my face light up like it had when I had first seen him in his corner. I knew this song. It was one of my favorites._

_I wasn't going to pass this one up._

_I grabbed him by the wrist and started tugging him toward the dance floor. "Come on, Sakyo! Let's dance!"_

_He didn't protest. I led him onto the dance floor, into the middle of the crowd. I let go of him then and began dancing, though I never moved far from him._

_It was the best dance of my life. Instinct took over, time lost meaning. It was like my body was on fire – and all I could do was dance._

_Most things went unnoticed by me for those two or three minutes. But I did try watching Sakyo. To be honest, he was a terrible dancer._

_Well, it was more like he didn't know how to dance. That no one had told him that dancing had no rules – there was no right way, or wrong way, to dance. Had someone told him that, he probably would've been a wonderful dancer._

_The song ended and the new song that stared was one that I didn't care for. I walked right up to him and I said, "You don't like to dance."_

_I could tell that by the look that had been on his face the entire time._

_He chuckled again, and I was glad. How much I loved the sound. "No."_

_"Why are you here, then?"_

_"I was..." He paused briefly. "Hoping to see you again, Atsuko."_

_My heart leapt. That was exactly what I had been hoping, ever since the first time – the only other time – we'd met. That he would want to see me again._

_I don't remember anything about that other night, really. I saw him standing alone in that corner. Curious, I had gone over to him. And we had talked._

_And when I left, I found myself hoping to see him again, thinking I would die if I didn't._

_"Me? You came to see me?"_

_He nodded now, not saying anything. There was a change in his eyes. It wasn't strange, it was just... different. It wasn't a look I'd seen in his eyes before._

_It was such a soft look._

_My heart was pounding now, like a jackhammer. At any second, it would break through my chest. He must have been able to hear it – I could barely hear my next word over the beating of my blood in my veins._

_"Why?" I asked him._

_He gently put a lock of my hair behind my ear. He came closer to me, bending down, leaning forward._

_And then he told me why._

_A few months later, it was pretty clear that I was pregnant. There was no other reason I could be the size, the shape, that I was. I exercised, stayed in shape. I was active. I ate french fries and greasy foods every once in a while, sure, but that wouldn't make a girl that huge._

_And being pregnant was hard – I was only 14, though I was 15 when you were born. But overall, it wasn't so bad._

_The child I had was Sakyo's._

_I thought I should tell him. He deserved to know – he was the father, after all. I told my mother that I was going to Sari's and I went to another party._

_Of course, I had my mood swings. It was almost impossible to control my moods. I realized that, with the way I was, I couldn't join in with these parties for the next six months. That thought depressed me so much – I almost lived to dance. I started to cry._

_I finally started looking for Sakyo and I found him in his corner._

_The tears on my face had dried, but they still clung to the bottoms of my eyes. I walked over to him and said, "Sakyo, I'm pregnant."_

_He stared at me for a moment. Then he turned and walked away._

_"Sakyo!" I yelled after him. I had to tell him, tell him I wasn't mad. I reached out after him. "Sakyo, wait!"_

_I know he heard me. He had to have. But he just kept walking._

_"Sakyo!" I was more frantic now, desperate._

_He kept walking. And he never looked back._

_I fell to my knees when I could no longer see him, when I knew he wasn't coming back. And then, I started sobbing._

_I know what you must think. You must think that I was drunk, or was raped. You must think that I was always a drinker and a partier._

_I hope you know now that that wasn't true._

_True, I did go to parties. And there was smoking and drinking there, yes. But I didn't smoke, and I didn't drink. I went to parties to hang out with people my age, my friends and classmates, and to dance._

_I know you must think I smoked and drank every single day I was pregnant with you. That isn't true, either – I didn't smoke or drink until after you were born._

_You spent the first week of your life in a hospital. They were worried, worried about both of us. But after seven days, they decided that we would be fine. And they let us go._

_When I got home, all my things were on the front porch. The door was locked. I knew my mother was home, but she ignored my shouting, my banging, and my crying._

_There were two other things on the porch for me – a slip of paper and an envelope. On the slip of paper was an address – our home. Though my mother had kicked me out, she hadn't totally abandoned me. In the envelope was some money and a note from my sister, who was 17._

_I started drinking, started smoking, as an escape. What else was I supposed to do? I was 15 years old, and trying to raise a child all on my own. I'd been kicked out of my home by my mother. Your father, the only man I'd ever loved, was gone. And you were a boy; one day you, my only link to your father, would leave me, too._

_And didn't you?_

_I can almost hear you now, Yusuke. You can't argue that you never left me, so instead you ask me, How could you have loved him? He was so much older than you!_

_I honestly don't know what it was about him. But I did love him. I still do, to this very day, even as I'm dying._

_And I know he loved me, too. He wasn't lying when he told me that. I know he wasn't._

_I wouldn't have given myself up to just anyone, Yusuke. I know you probably think otherwise. But Sakyo is the only – only – man I've ever slept with._

_And I know you think I'm the worst mother ever. There's nothing I can say to that. All I hope is that now you understand. I was devastated. I was 15. I had no idea how to raise a child, and I had to do it all on my own._

_The only thing I can say is sorry._

_I'm sorry I let you down, Yusuke. I'm sorry I was a terrible mother. But I want you to know that I love you, and I always have loved you. Even when I was drunk or bitched at you or threw things at you, I still loved you._

_And I wanted you to know that you weren't the result of a one-night-stand. Well, actually, you were, in a way. But I loved your father, Yusuke. Still love him._

_There are plenty of things that I regret, but you aren't one of them._

_So I'm sorry I wasn't able to do better, Yusuke. I'm so sorry._

_And I love you._

_- Mom_

The letter slipped from Yusuke's fingers and he collapsed into the nearest chair. He sat there for a minute, sort of numb, not quite sure how to feel.

Finally, tears in his eyes, he lifted his head to the ceiling. And he whispered, "I love you, too, Mom."

- Kuramastrass -


	2. Sakyo

**I thought it sounded a little like Sakyo was being an ass, so I decided to give him a chance to defend himself. (Actually, I wrote this first, but I was never able to think of a title. I liked it too much to just toss it out, though, and I still can't think of a title. That's why it's the second chapter to this rather than its own one-shot.)**

**I don't own YuYu Hakusho.**

**I only wrote this because I really do think Sakyo is Yusuke's father. I know, I know, Atsuko would have recognized him. But maybe she didn't want to. But let's face it, even if it isn't Sakyo, it's probably someone like him.**

**And they're both cocky. And the same hair and eye colors...**

**And I think Togashi would put Yusuke's father in there, just hidden so we have to look.**

**I also think that Sakyo was once a lovable being... well, I don't think that, but I like to imagine he was. I also like to imagine Atsuko as a happy child. The younger Atsuko of my imagination is so adorable.**

**The ending to this kinda sucks... oh well. I really just wanted everyone to understand why Sakyo left if he loved Atsuko so much.**

**So, enjoy the second (and definitely final) chapter of "How I Met Your Father"! Read and review, please!**

He stood in the darkest corner of the crowded room. The lights were pulsing, red and blue coloring the room. The music was loud, loud to the point that it was just garbage – not music at all. The words were garbled, unintelligible. The only thing musical about it was that there was a beat – the bass was pounding, blaring, and he could feel his entire body vibrating to it.

Even so, all the teenagers in the room were moving, dancing. Shouting to each other over the noise. Having a great time, all the while ruining their hearing.

Sakyo didn't even know what he was doing here. He didn't like dancing. He didn't like the huge crowd of teenagers. He didn't like the lights or the music.

Then he saw her, at the same moment she saw him. She bounded over to him, high on the energy of the room.

"Hi, Sakyo!"

He chuckled, but he smiled, too. "Atsuko."

"Isn't this party _great_?"

"Wonderful." He rolled his eyes.

She put a hand over her mouth and giggled, like she couldn't believe that there was anyone who _wasn't_ having fun.

He didn't know what it was about her. He found himself... attracted to her, to her personality, to her spirit, to her energy. He didn't know why. She was 14, a little more than 10 years younger than him.

But the attraction seemed to work the other way, as well.

"Does your mother know that you're here?" he asked her.

"No – of _course_ not!" she exclaimed, shocked that he could even think such a thing. "Why would I tell her that I was coming _here_?"

He chuckled. "Where did you tell her you _were_, then?"

"I'm studying at Sari's." He was confused, she must have been able to tell. He was about to ask who Sari was, but she answered before he could. "Sari's one of my classmates – everyone says they're going to her place to study when they want to go somewhere."

"And what are you studying?"

A blank look crossed her face. "I don't know," she said. "I forgot." He began to chuckle again, and she added, "I'll ask Sari later."

She turned and pointed into the crowd, at a dancing blonde. "That's her."

Atsuko turned back to face him. A new song began playing. Her face lit up – she must have known this song. She grabbed his wrist and tried to pull him toward the dance floor. "Come on, Sakyo! Let's dance!"

He hated dancing, but he said nothing. She pulled him into the middle of the crowd, then let go of him and began moving her body this way and that, randomly, with no pattern whatsoever. Yet, everything she did was in time with, in tune to, the song.

How beautiful she was. She seemed to exert absolutely no effort at all. She was almost flowing along to the music. It came so naturally to her.

For that, he envied her. He couldn't dance.

He tried. But it was stiff, unnatural. Most of the teens in the crowd ignored him, but some gave him suspicious, fearful looks.

The song ended, and Atsuko came back to him. "You don't like to dance." It wasn't a question, it was a statement.

He chuckled. "No."

"Why are you here, then?"

"I was... hoping to see you again, Atsuko."

Her face lit up like it had when the song began. "Me? You came to see _me_?" She sounded shocked. Happy, flattered, but shocked.

He nodded.

"Why?" she whispered. She sounded bewildered now.

He leaned toward her, brushed her long hair off her face, behind her ear. Then he told her why, ever so softly.

- -

He missed her. It had been months since he'd seen her, felt alive because of her presence.

He should've come back to see her sooner, but... he hadn't been desperate enough, to hang around teenagers and loud music for hours just for the _possibility _of seeing her.

And anyway, he'd been busy.

He felt slightly worried as he waited in his corner. His feelings for her hadn't changed much – if anything, they were worse. Stronger.

But what about her?

He almost didn't recognize her when he first saw her. She wasn't as full of life and energy. The happiness, the youth, that had hung around her like a cloud was replaced with an air of sadness.

Sakyo was amazed. He hadn't realized that the girl had the _capacity _to be sad – not when both times that he had seen her, she had been so happy, her spirit so vibrant.

As he came closer, he thought he knew the reason. There could only be one reason she was as huge as she now was.

She walked over to him. He could see the dried tears on her cheeks. And when she spoke... it was a strange sensation, a ripping in his chest.

"Sakyo," Atsuko said, sounding as though she might burst into tears at any moment. "I'm pregnant."

And it was him. He was the father. That was what she was about to tell him.

It had to be him. Who else would it be? She wouldn't have given herself to just anyone – he didn't believe she was like that. And she had been a virgin up until three months ago...

How stupid _was_ he? His own life wasn't messed up enough, so he had to ruin the life of the most wonderful girl on the planet?

She was only 14!

He turned and walked away.

"Sakyo!" she called after him. "Sakyo, wait!"

It hurt him. First her tears, the look on her face, and then the sound of her voice as she called for him.

But he kept walking.

"Sakyo!"

He didn't turn. He wouldn't go back to her. He wouldn't make things worse or ruin her life any more than he already had.

His _own _life was going to be over soon, anyway.

He smiled, then, and made a solemn vow. As hard as it was going to be, he was going to move on. He would forget her, never think about her again.

And with her behind him, when he died, he would die in peace.

But he never imagined that before he died – which took a lot longer than he anticipated – that he would meet his child, his son. And that when he did, that they would be on opposite sides, trying to kill each other.

He would have liked to believe that his son would've become something great. That he could've been anything he wanted. But he never would've thought of this.

He never would've thought that his son would turn out to be the Spirit Detective.

The greatest Spirit Detective of them all. Yusuke Urameshi.

- Kuramastrass -


End file.
